# How to Build a Billboard Rate Card (With Example)

URL: https://gabie.ai/learn/billboard-rate-card
Type: How-to · Published: 2026-10-08 · Updated: 2026-10-08 · By: Gabie Research

Short answer: A billboard rate card lists a price for every face, usually per 4-week period, plus production and install costs. Set each rate from the face's traffic, size and location. Then check it against similar faces and how often the face sells. Add simple rules for longer terms and busy seasons, and price digital faces by the spot in the loop.

Key takeaways:
- Rate each face, not each format. Traffic, size and location set the price.
- Quote per 4 weeks or per month, and label it. A year has 13 four-week periods.
- Check every rate against comparable faces and how often the face sells.
- Price digital by the spot. With 8 spots, each ad gets one-eighth of the plays.
- US prices rose 3.7% in the year to September 2026, a useful check for yearly increases.

A rate card is your price list. It tells reps and buyers what each face costs before any deal starts. A good one is simple, clearly labeled and the same for every rep.

## What goes on a billboard rate card?

One row per face. Here's a sample from Riverbend Outdoor, an invented company.

| Face | Format and size | Location and read | Vehicles a day | Rate per 4 weeks | Monthly equal | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B-114 N | Bulletin, 14 × 48 ft, lit | US-45 Bypass at Madison Ave, reads north | 21,400 (TDOT) | $1,850 | $2,004 | Quoted per job |
| B-114 S | Bulletin, 14 × 48 ft, lit | US-45 Bypass at Madison Ave, reads south | 21,400 (TDOT) | $1,700 | $1,842 | Quoted per job |
| P-019 | Poster, 11 × 23 ft | US-45 Bypass at Madison Ave | 21,400 (TDOT) | $650 | $704 | Quoted per job |
| D-031 | Digital, 8 spots of 8 seconds | Hwy 412 West, Milan | [count] (TDOT) | $500 per spot | $542 per spot | Digital file, no print |

Add a notes column for lighting hours, permits or content rules. Put the year of each traffic count on the card.

## Should you quote per 4 weeks or per month?

Either, if you label it. [Lamar](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090425/000109042526000008/lamr-20251231.htm) says its contracts are "generally billed every four weeks" in its 10-K. A year has 13 four-week periods. So a monthly rate equals the 4-week rate times 13, divided by 12. B-114 N at $1,850 per 4 weeks is about $2,004 a month. Our [4-week rate converter](https://gabie.ai/tools/four-week-rate-converter) does the math.

## How do you set each rate?

Use three checks, in this order.

1. **Traffic.** Start with the state DOT count. The [FHWA](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/tmguide/tmg_2022/tmg-glossary.cfm) defines it as a year's traffic divided by 365. [TDOT](https://www.tn.gov/tdot/driver-how-do-i/look-at-or-order-state-maps/maps/annual-average-daily-traffic-maps.html) counts both directions, so a face that reads one way gets part of it. Compare your faces by cost per 1,000 vehicles. B-114 N works out to about $3.09.
2. **Comparable faces.** Look at faces in the same market and format, at a similar size. Use your own faces and quotes that buyers share with you. Adjust for which way it reads and whether it's lit.
3. **Occupancy.** A face that sells all year with a waitlist is priced too low. A face that sits empty for months may be priced too high. See our guide to [billboard occupancy rate](https://gabie.ai/learn/billboard-occupancy-rate).

## How should you handle production and install?

Keep them off the space rate. List printing, install and copy changes as their own lines. Get a current quote from your printer, and pass it on clearly. Say who designs the art and when it's due.

## Should you add seasonal and term pricing?

Keep it simple. Two rules cover most cards.

- **Term pricing.** Lower the rate for longer commitments. For example, charge card rate for 1 to 5 periods. Take 5% off for 6 to 12 periods, and 10% off for 13.
- **Seasonal pricing.** Hold firm in your busy months. Offer short deals in slow months, but set a floor you won't go below.

Raise the card once a year, and say why. US prices rose 3.7% in the 12 months to September 2026, per the [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.nr0.htm). US out-of-home ad spending grew 3.6% in 2025, per the [OAAA](https://oaaa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/YE-2025-Top-Ten-OOH-Product-Category-Industries-2.pdf).

## Who can quote off the card?

Decide this before a rep asks. A simple rule works: reps can go a set amount below card on their own. Anything lower needs a manager's yes. Write down why each deal went off card. After a few months, you'll see which faces are priced wrong.

## How often should you update the card?

Review it every quarter. Check which faces sold, which sat empty and which got the most requests. Raise the rate on faces with a waitlist. Look hard at faces that stayed empty. Then change the printed card once a year, with notice to current advertisers.

## How do you price digital spots?

A digital face shows several ads in a loop. Lamar's digital boards rotate each ad "approximately every 6 to 8 seconds," it reports. With 8 spots of 8 seconds, the loop is 64 seconds. Each spot gets one-eighth of the plays.

Price each spot per 4 weeks. All 8 spots together should earn more than one static face would. Pay-per-play sellers give you a floor to compare. [Blip](https://www.blipbillboards.com/pricing/) lists plays "starting at $0.01 per 8-second play" on its pricing page. Our [digital loop calculator](https://gabie.ai/tools/digital-loop-calculator) helps you size the loop.

> How Gabie handles this: Gabie stores a rate on every face. Proposals reload card rates each time you save and flag any line priced away from the card. The yield board ranks open faces by traffic. It suggests a new rate only when it has at least 3 comparable faces. They must be in the same market and format. It won't suggest a cut while an open proposal quotes the face. Avails export as a branded sheet or a CSV. See [Gabie Inventory](https://gabie.ai/platform/inventory).

## Questions people ask
### What is a billboard rate card?
A price list with a rate for each face, usually per 4-week period, plus production and install costs. Reps quote from it, so every buyer hears the same price.

### Should billboard rates be per month or per 4 weeks?
Either, if you label it. Lamar bills every four weeks, which gives 13 periods a year. A monthly rate equals the 4-week rate times 13, divided by 12.

### How much should I raise billboard rates each year?
Base it on demand for each face. As a check, US consumer prices rose 3.7% in the year to September 2026, and US out-of-home ad spending grew 3.6% in 2025.

### How do you price a digital billboard spot?
Price each spot in the loop per 4 weeks. With 8 spots of 8 seconds, the loop is 64 seconds and each ad gets one-eighth of the plays.

### Should production be included in the billboard rate?
No. List printing and install as separate lines, so buyers can compare space rates fairly.

## Sources
1. Lamar Advertising Company Form 10-K for fiscal year 2025, Lamar Advertising Company, via SEC EDGAR. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1090425/000109042526000008/lamr-20251231.htm (accessed 2026-10-08)
2. Traffic Monitoring Guide 2022: Glossary, Federal Highway Administration. https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/tmguide/tmg_2022/tmg-glossary.cfm (accessed 2026-10-08)
3. Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) Maps, Tennessee Department of Transportation. https://www.tn.gov/tdot/driver-how-do-i/look-at-or-order-state-maps/maps/annual-average-daily-traffic-maps.html (accessed 2026-10-08)
4. Consumer Price Index News Release, September 2026, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cpi.nr0.htm (accessed 2026-10-15)
5. 2025 January–December OOH Advertising Expenditures Ranked by Total Spending, OAAA (data by MediaRadar). https://oaaa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/YE-2025-Top-Ten-OOH-Product-Category-Industries-2.pdf (accessed 2026-10-08)
6. Digital Billboard Advertising Pricing, Blip. https://www.blipbillboards.com/pricing/ (accessed 2026-10-08)